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Contact: Vincenzo Zaccaria, PhD Job title: R&D Manager Company: BIONAP Contact: info@bionap.com Visit us: www.bionap.com
1How has the digestive health category evolved in the last two years in response to consumer demands for preventive nutrition products?
In recent years the attention of the consumers on the health of gastrointestinal tract has grown from year by year and the scientific knowledge has led to expand the offer of products: starting from the wellbeing of the gastrointestinal tract to general health thanks to the strong scientific evidences supporting the gut brain axes and the relation with immune system, inflammation, cardiovascular health and so on. The supplementation for the gastrointestinal discomfort changed from acute treatment to preventive use in order to maintain the general health and wellbeing. In a fist time the probiotics were the mainly products, but in the last years the consumers focused their attention on prebiotic fibers, botanical extracts able to prevent gastric ulcers, to reduce the intestinal permeability and, in general, to improve the overall health by taking care of the gastrointestinal tract. In the meantime, also the products formulation changed from the capsules/tablets to foods, supplemented by active compounds, to everyday use.
2What unique ingredient(s) do you offer in the digestive health category?
BIONAP researches, develops and produces extracts starting from plants commonly used as folk remedies in Sicily and Mediterranean areas. MUCOSAVE™FG is the best proposal in our hands for digestive health categories; it is a standardized powder extract, clinically proven, easy to formulate in solid forms.
MUCOSAVE™FG, a blend of two herbal extracts containing polysaccharides of prickle pear cladodes (Opuntia ficus indica (L.)) and biophenols of olive leaves (Olea europaea (L.)). MUCOSAVE™FG is a unique combination specifically created for mucosal support and to counteract the main symptoms caused by gastrointestinal disorders. MUCOSAVE™FG has a strong mucoadhesive ability due to the Opuntia polysaccharides and a soothing effect from olive biophenols.
Thanks to this combination, MUCOSAVE™FG is able to protect sensitive mucosae and prevent mucosal alteration and disease. In the clinical trials the treatment with MUCOSAVE™FG reduces gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms, such as heartburn and abdominal pain, by the second day. It is an all-natural plant product which improves the Quality of Life, by increasing the wellbeing of users during early stages of supplementation.
Moreover, MUCOSAVE™FG is able to improve the intestinal microbioma trough a prebiotic activity and their production of short chain fatty acid involved in the gut brain axes.
3In what applications can your ingredient(s) be incorporated, and do they offer particular benefits compared to similar products?
MUCOSAVE™FG can be used in food supplements and medical devices for the health of gastrointestinal tract, it is able to work in the stomach resolving GERD symptoms alone or in combination with other anti-acid agents but, in the meantime, to improve the intestinal health. Thanks to its physical properties, MUCOSAVE™FG is suitable to be formulated in capsules, tablets, sachets in combination with probiotics agents without particular advices or pharmaceutical technologies. Additionally, MUCOSAVE™FG is vegan, Halal certified, verified by true ID, naturally lactose and gluten free; moreover, it is produced within a sustainable chain. This is an ingredient supported by a lot of preclinical and clinical studies confirming the action of 400 mg/die of extract on wellbeing of gastrointestinal tract.
4What are the whitespace opportunities for product developers and marketers in the digestive health category?
Nowadays the products in the market have a single activity on the gastrointestinal discomfort, while one of the whitespace opportunities is to produce food supplements by using ingredients that are able to take care of gastrointestinal tract and simultaneously to improve the overall health by the gut brain axes and by acting on immune system, inflammation, cardiovascular health and so on, as wide supported by scientific literature.
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